Red Wings Add Daley

The Detroit Red Wings were not in any position to make a real big splash in the free agency window, but they did manage to snag one key player off the list, defenseman Trevor Daley.

The 33-year old defender signed a 3-year, $9.5 million deal on Saturday, rounding out a pretty impressive top five defense corps in Detroit.

Daley was a part of the Stanley Cup winning Pittsburgh Penguins team in the 2017 season, where he had a pretty good regular season, as well as playoffs, scoring 5 goals and 19 points in only 56 games during the year, ranking him 86th among all defensemen.

It's a pretty full looking blueline in Detroit, with some pretty big minute guys already on the roster, so Daley will have to earn his ice-time or at the very least, find some good chemistry with one of the other four defensemen and he could work his way into some more minutes.

The Red Wings are not looking too deep at the forward position yet, so if he can help generate more offense from the blueline, this team would be miles better for it.

Forwards	Cap	Defense	Cap	Goalies	Cap
Henrik Zetterberg	6.083	Mike Green	6.000	Jimmy Howard	5.292
Frans Nielsen	5.250	Danny DeKeyser	5.000	Petr Mrazek	4.000
Gustav Nyquist	4.750	Niklas Kronwall	4.750
Justin Abdelkader	4.250	Jonathan Ericsson	4.250
Johan Franzen	3.955	Trevor Daley	3.178
Darren Helm	3.850	Nick Jensen	0.813
Riley Sheahan	2.075	Ryan Sproul	0.625
Luke Glendening	1.800
Dylan Larkin	0.925
Evgeny Svechnikov	0.894
Anthony Mantha	0.863
Eric Tangradi	0.650
Tyler Bertuzzi	0.645
Matt Lorito	0.638

With Johan Franzen's contract on the books, for now, I am showing the Red Wings with only $1.4 million in cap space to play with.  Franzen will likely be heading to LTIR when the season opens, but that extra cap space is now likely going to make its way to Tomas Tatar and/or Andreas Athanasiou, who are both restricted free agents this summer.

Without a lot of scoring depth on this team, offense is going to be hard to come by, which will make them less of an option for the hockey pool draft this fall.  I don't see very many options for this team for the early rounds, but if you're able to sneak a couple of these guys midway through the draft, mainly on the blueline, you're probably doing yourself quite the favour.

Fringe Signings (Jul 2)

There were a lot of names tossed around late on Friday night and early on Saturday morning and one of those early names, linking player to team with term and cost was defenseman Karl Alzner and the Montreal Canadiens, as it was announced very early this morning that he agreed to a 5-year deal, worth $4.625 million per season.

Alzner, 28, is considered to be more of a shutdown defender, than an offensive option, did manage 3 goals and 13 points in all 82 games for the Capitals last season, not too far out of the range of the hockey pool sort.  He should be a great fit in Montreal.

First, the Blackhawks made the trade to bring Brandon Saad back to town, now they sign Patrick Sharp to a new deal, bringing him back into the fold, possibly for another big run.  The deal was confirmed to be a 1-year deal, $800,000, plus bonuses in a 35+ contract.

Sharp had a tough year in Dallas, only playing in 48 games and picking up 18 points, but a revival in Chicago should boost his stock somewhat and he could be a good find, later on in the draft, if everyone has forgotten about him, thanks to his poor 2017 season.

The Boston Bruins added veteran defenseman Paul Postma to their ranks on Saturday, signing him to a 1-year deal, reportedly worth $725,000. Postma finished 127th in defensemen scoring last season with the Jets, scoring 1 goal and 14 points in 65 games.

The Bruins blueline isn't looking too bad, especially with the way Brandon Carlo and Charlie McAvoy have come around for them.  Adding Postma should give them a pretty good option for a seventh defenseman, who can slide up the depth chart, when needed.

The Minnesota Wild were also in the market for a defenseman, as they have shifted a great deal of bodies in and out already this off-season. They were able to sign Kyle Quincey to a 1-year, $1.25 million deal on Saturday and then on Sunday, they were also able to re-sign restricted free agent defenseman Mike Reilly to a 2-year, $1.45 million deal.

Quincey was the better of the two offensively, scoring 6 goals and 15 points in Columbus last season, while Reilly had 1 goal in 17 games with the Wild last year.

Martin Hanzal Goes to Dallas

The Dallas Stars have been trying to work on their defensive structure, on paper, at least.  The addition of Martin Hanzal should help with that, as the hulking centre does play a decent two-way game.

The Stars signed Hanzal to a 3-year, $14.25 million deal on Saturday, adding him to a pretty offensive cast of characters already in the fold.
Hanzal is no slouch when it comes to the offensive side either, as he tallied 20 goals and 39 points in 71 games between Arizona and Minnesota, the move between teams coming at the trade deadline.  Unfortunately for the Wild, Hanzal did not pan out very well at all, going cold in his new surroundings and the Wild were quickly dispatched, when the lost to the St. Louis Blues in five games.

Nevertheless, the Stars were quick on the draw to try and get Hanzal signed and he should compliment the team in a third line centre role, along with shutdown defenseman Marc Methot, who they acquired a few days earlier from Vegas.  The framework for a better defensive system in Dallas appears to be in place, now they just need to upgrade their depth a little bit more.

Forwards	Cap	Defense	Cap	Goalies	Cap
Jamie Benn	9.500	Marc Methot	4.900	Kari Lehtonen	5.900
Jason Spezza	7.500	John Klingberg	4.250	Ben Bishop	4.917
Tyler Seguin	5.750	Dan Hamhuis	3.750
Martin Hanzal	4.750	Esa Lindell	2.200
Antoine Roussel	2.000	Patrik Nemeth	0.945
Tyler Pitlick	1.000	Julius Honka	0.863
Denis Gurianov	0.925	Greg Pateryn	0.850
Jason Dickinson	0.894
Devin Shore	0.870
Remi Elie	0.745
Curtis McKenzie	0.700
MattIas Janmark	0.700
Brian Flynn	0.700
Adam Cracknell	0.675

With new faces like Hanzal, Methot and Ben Bishop, the Stars are spending money to be a better team, but like a good portion of the teams we've featured on the blog, they are doing so with a 23-man projected roster that has cap space to spare.  The Stars are looking at about $8.2 million right now and they have a couple restricted free agents that I'm sure they would like to have deals in place for soon.

The Stars are coming along well, but they had a long ways to go.  Any help that they could give to Benn, Spezza and Seguin was going to be appreciated in their lineup and dressing room.  They may still need to pull a couple more rabbits out of their hat to start competing in the Central Division again, but after the first couple of days of free agency, you can tell something is working for them.

Nashville Deals Wilson to Denver

			2017 Season			July 1st Status
To Colorado	Pos	Age	GP	Goals	Points	Years	Cap
Colin Wilson	F	27	70	12	35	2	$3.9m
-----
To Nashville	Pos	Age	GP	G/W	Points	Years	Cap
2019 4th Round Draft Pick

The Colorado Avalanche have been on trade watch for a little while now, as everyone eagerly anticipates Matt Duchene getting dealt out of Denver. It almost seemed like the deal was done, but as Nashville had been courting the Avalanche in the whole process, but in the end, Colin Wilson is now a member of the Colorado Avalanche and all that went back is a mid-round pick.

Wilson was a pool worthy member of the Predators last season, but some changes apparently needed to be made in Nashville and the cost cutting move that was sending Wilson to Colorado was one of those deals.

The move certainly helps the Avalanche, who are still lacking in the depth department, throughout their roster.  Wilson should step into a top six role with his new team, but from there, it's kind of a crap shoot.  The Avalanche have so much more work to do to their roster, but this is a good start.

Sabres Bring Back Johnson

The Buffalo Sabres continue to make noise, as they try and shore up spots on their roster, strengthening it throughout.  They kept pretty busy on Saturday, when free agency opened up, but kept the splashes pretty small, signing only one pool worthy player amongst the group.
Goaltender Chad Johnson will return to the Sabres for the 2017 season, only a year removed from his last stint, where he spent the season in Calgary with the Flames.  Johnson appeared in 36 games, posting 18 wins and 42 hockey pool points, good enough for 31st among all goalies.

Once Robin Lehner has a new contract, it is expected that both he and Johnson will likely split the duties and the hot hand will probably stay in the crease, as they go.

Forwards Benoit Pouliot and Jacob Josefson were also added to the team's projected roster below after they signed new deals with the Sabres, neither were worthy in the 2017 season, but they should be everyday guys for the team, assuming they can stay healthy.

Forwards	Cap	Defense	Cap	Goalies	Cap
Ryan O'Reilly	7.500	Rasmus Ristolainen	5.400	Chad Johnson	2.500
Kyle Okposo	6.000	Zach Bogosian	5.143	Linus Ullmark	0.750
Jason Pominville	5.600	Marco Scandella	4.000
Evander Kane	5.250	Josh Gorges	3.900
Matt Moulson	5.000	Jake McCabe	1.600
Benoit Pouliot	1.150	Justin Falk	0.650
Jack Eichel	0.925	Casey Nelson	0.650
Hudson Fasching	0.925
Alexander Nylander	0.925
Sam Reinhart	0.894
Evan Rodrigues	0.843
Nicolas Deslauriers	0.775
Jacob Josefson	0.700
Seth Griffith	0.650

There is still quite a bit of work to be done in Buffalo, as mentioned, Lehner needs a new deal, as does Zemgus Girgensons, Johan Larsson and recently-acquired defenseman Nathan Beaulieu.  The Sabres have about $13.2 million in unused cap space, considering the 23-man roster above.  All four players should come in with room to spare, one would think, as this team rounds out quite nicely.

The goal for the Sabres was to keep their franchise player happy in this off-season and I would have to think that Jack Eichel likes what he sees, so far.  Buffalo has done well to add some pieces and shift around some money to the spots that really needed it.  Their blueline should be far more impressive this year, now that they have acquired more help for Ristolainen.  Once the goaltending finally get sorted out, these guys should be ready to compete on opening night.

Ducks Add Miller to Their Crease

The Anaheim Ducks were not terribly busy on Saturday, but they did manage to add goalie Ryan Miller to a cheap, coming home contract and they put pen to paper on a contract extension with defenseman Cam Fowler.

Miller's desire to play in California stemmed a lot from his family situation, already living down there, so a cheap, 2-year, $4 million deal to help John Gibson out, made sense for him.

Miller was Vancouver's best player in the 2017 season, stealing games when he had help from his offense, but it was still a struggle to find consistent wins on a rebuilding team.  Now, he will have the opportunity to mentor another American goalie, as Gibson starts to round himself into an everyday starter.

Once July 1st rolled around, the Ducks could start to negotiate a contract extension with Fowler, who still has one more year on his current deal.  He'll see a significant pay raise when his 8-year extension kicks in in the 2019 season, going from his current $4 million cap hit up to $6.5 million.  As the 26th ranked defenseman in scoring last season, he's certainly earned the raise.

Forwards	Cap	Defense	Cap	Goalies	Cap
Corey Perry	8.625	Hampus Lindholm	5.250	John Gibson	2.300
Ryan Getzlaf	8.250	Sami Vatanen	4.875	Ryan Miller	2.000
Ryan Kesler	6.875	Cam Fowler	4.000
Rickard Rakell	3.800	Brandon Montour	0.925
Jakob Silfverberg	3.750	Korbinian Holzer	0.900
Patrick Eaves	3.150	Shea Theodore	0.863
Andrew Cogliano	3.000	Josh Manson	0.825
Antoine Vermette	1.750
Jared Boll	0.900
Nick Ritchie	0.894
Ondrej Kase	0.670
Logan Shaw	0.650
Chris Wagner	0.638
Corey Tropp	0.625

The Ducks haven't seen many changes yet in this off-season, adding a back-up goalie is all they have really done, so far.  I am currently showing the Ducks with $7.3 million in cap space left to use, if they so choose to tinker with this 23-man projected roster.

The Ducks looked pretty strong in the playoffs, until they ran into the Nashville Predators, so they are wise to stay the course with most of their roster players.  Re-signing Patrick Eaves earlier in the off-season was a shrewd move and adding Miller is a good move for the team, as they get a little deeper in net, adding that presence as well.  Anaheim appears to still be strong, so they will be a force to be reckoned with again in 2018.

Justin Williams Goes Back to Carolina

The Carolina Hurricanes signed a handful of players at the start of free agency on Saturday, but only one notable player to us hockey poolies, forward Justin Williams. Williams makes his return to a team that he has won a Stanley Cup with, signing a 2-year, $9 million deal to complete his return.

Williams, already a grizzled veteran at 35 years old, tried to help the Washington Capitals to a Stanley Cup last season, playing in 80 regular season games, scoring 24 goals and 48 points.  Unfortunately, his playoff magic didn't appear for the Capitals, as they were dumped again by the Pittsburgh Penguins, the eventual champions.

The Hurricanes did well to sign on Williams, who has still been very productive in these last few seasons and he will certainly be a positive influence on the team's youth movement, with the likes of Sebastian Aho and Victor Rask emerging as quality talent on their roster.

Forwards	Cap	Defense	Cap	Goalies	Cap
Jordan Staal	6.000	Justin Faulk	4.833	Scott Darling	4.150
Jeff Skinner	5.725	Noah Hanifin	0.925	Cam Ward	3.300
Justin Williams	4.500	Klas Dahlbeck	0.850
Victor Rask	4.000	Trevor Van Riemsdyk	0.825
Teuvo Teravainen	2.860	Brett Pesce	0.809
Elias Lindholm	2.700	Jaccob Slavin	0.743
Lee Stempniak	2.500	Trevor Carrick	0.670
Derek Ryan	1.425
Joakim Nordstrom	1.275
Sebastian Aho	0.925
Julien Gauthier	0.925
Brock McGinn	0.888
Janne Kuokkanen	0.843
Josh Jooris	0.775

The Hurricanes have retained salary in deals, bought out some players, made a couple signings, but by my quick math, they are still just below the salary cap floor with this 23-man roster above.  They are just barely below, mind you, and another key signing to a free agent or taking on a big contract via trade are still possibilities in the early part of this summer, so they shouldn't be too worried.

The defense on this team is still rather underrated and the new goaltending tandem of Scott Darling and Cam Ward could be enough to scare some teams in the Atlantic Division.  Scoring depth will continue to be an issue, as they stand right now, but the Hurricanes are definitely moving in the right direction.

Canucks Among the Busiest in the Pool

The Vancouver Canucks made a splash in the free agency pool on Saturday, adding three pool worthy players and a couple of fringe players as well.

One of their biggest signings was forward Sam Gagner, inking him to a 3-year, $9.45 million deal.  The 27-year old forward had a big bounce back season with the Columbus Blue Jackets, picking up 18 goals and 50 points in 81 games for the club, which ranked him 124th overall in pool scoring, 92nd among all forwards.

Next up on list was the 48th ranked goalie in the scoring rankings, Anders Nilsson, who signed a 2-year, $5 million deal, adding depth behind Jacob Markstrom for the the 2018 season.  Nilsson played in Buffalo last year, posting 10 wins in 26 appearances.  There's a fine chance that Nilsson will likely see an increase in ice-time, as Markstrom hasn't quite made it to the elite level, where he's playing 65 games or more.

On the blueline, the Canucks were also fortunate to add Michael Del Zotto, signing him to a 2-year, $6 million deal.  The offensive-minded defender could help to anchor a floundering power play in 2017, as he brings 6 goals and 18 points in 51 games with the Flyers last season to the table.  Del Zotto lost significant time last year to lower-body injuries, but he should start the season healthy.

The Canucks also added forward Alexander Burmistrov and defenseman Patrick Wiercioch on Saturday, both getting 1-year deals, below the $1 million mark.

Forwards	Cap	Defense	Cap	Goalies	Cap
Henrik Sedin	7.000	Alexander Edler	5.000	Jacob Markstrom	3.670
Daniel Sedin	7.000	Christopher Tanev	4.450	Anders Nilsson	2.500
Loui Eriksson	6.000	Erik Gudbranson	3.500
Brandon Sutter	4.375	Michael Del Zotto	3.000
Sam Gagner	3.150	Ben Hutton	2.800
Derek Dorsett	2.650	Troy Stecher	0.925
Sven Baertschi	1.850	Olli Juolevi	0.925
Brock Boeser	0.925
Griffen Molino	0.925
Jonathan Dahlen	0.925
Markus Granlund	0.900
Alexander Burmistrov	0.900
Nikolay Goldobin	0.863
Jayson Megna	0.675

The Canucks had a lot of cap space to work with to start on Saturday and they put a pretty good dent in the 2018 number, adding over $9.5 million to their projected roster above.  I currently have them in with $7.96 million left in cap space after Saturday's spending spree and they still have to re-sign Bo Horvat to a new deal out of his entry-level contract, which should also leave a big mark on their cap number.

As a team in the 2017 season, the Canucks were not a very hard-working bunch and the addition of both Gagner and Del Zotto, two talented underachievers, doesn't exactly build confidence on paper.  The Canucks do have some quality youth coming up through the system and these signings may help bridge the gap, but staying competitive is also on management's docket for the year and I just don't think they're there yet.

Panthers Add Vrbata & Dadonov

The Florida Panthers were busy on Saturday, making a handful of signings, but most notably, the Panthers got pool worthy veteran forward Radim Vrbara on a 1-year deal and they signed KHL All-Star forward Evgeny Dadonov to a 3-year deal.

Vrbata wasn't part of the youth movement going forward in Arizona, so he was not re-signed after his second stint with the Coyotes, even though he gave them a pretty good season.  The 36-year old scored 20 goals and 55 points in 81 games for the Coyotes and he will now take that production to Florida, where he'll have an annual cap hit of $2.5 million and also be in line for upwards of another $1 million in bonuses.

Dadonov, 28, was drafted by the Panthers back in 2007, but could never really get any traction with the team in his youth.  After his entry-level deal expired, he went back to Russia and the KHL, where his game improved year-after-year and in the 2017 with St. Petersburg, he scored 30 goals and 66 points in 53 games.  Now, he returns to the Panthers as a better veteran player and he'll try to make a better impression on the NHL, now that he has conquered the KHL.

Vrbata should be a good add to this team, which parted ways with another veteran great in Jaromir Jagr, while Dadonov is a worth while gamble, especially given his numbers in Russia.  It's hard to say where they'd fit in exactly at the moment, but they certainly don't look out of place on the projected roster below.

Forwards	Cap	Defense	Cap	Goalies	Cap
Aleksander Barkov	5.900	Aaron Ekblad	7.500	Roberto Luongo	4.533
Jonathan Huberdeau	5.900	Keith Yandle	6.350	James Reimer	3.400
Vincent Trocheck	4.750	Jason Demers	4.500
Nick Bjugstad	4.100	Alex Petrovic	1.850
Evgeny Dadonov	4.000	Michael Matheson	0.925
Radim Vrbata	2.500	Ian McCoshen	0.925
Derek MacKenzie	1.375	Michael Downing	0.820
Colton Sceviour	0.950
Jayce Hawryluk	0.925
Henrik Haapala	0.925
Jared McCann	0.894
Micheal Haley	0.825
Dryden Hunt	0.809
Denis Malgin	0.690

The Florida Panthers are also showing some good flexibility in the early parts of this free agency period.  Their current cap hit is sitting at $66.7 million with a full 23-man roster above.  I would expect some of those young names to possibly flip over before the end of the summer, but they are all rocking some higher end entry-level deals, so the flexibility does remain, when adding more seasoned talent to the roster.

Injuries devastated the Panthers in the 2017 season, so now they'll be coming out from the shadows a little bit in the 2018 season and if their potential can be realized, thanks to their veteran additions, they could be a very fun team to watch and pick from in the hockey pool draft.  I would be keeping a close eye on these Panthers through the rest of the off-season, they've got room to move and a good core that could use some touching up.

Elliott Lands in Philly

The Philadelphia Flyers were another team that was looking to go in a different direction with their goaltending situation and they made the move to sign veteran keeper Brian Elliott to a new 2-year deal, worth $5.5 million.

The 32-year old keeper split time in Calgary with Chad Johnson, but assumed the number one role in the second half of the season, when he finally found his stride with the team in their run towards the playoffs.  He appeared in 49 games for the Flames, posting 26 wins and 56 points in the hockey pool, good enough for 21st among all goalies.  Unfortunately for him, that run of good hockey wasn't enough for Flames management to offer him a new deal and his time in Calgary was limited to just the one season.

The Flyers do add a good veteran presence with Elliott and he will certainly battle in net, which he may need to in spades.  Philadelphia has had a reputation of leaving their goalies hung out to dry a lot, so it will be on Elliott to work through some of their defensive struggles..

It is an exciting time for the Flyers these days, also getting to add Nolan Patrick at the draft a week ago, the turnaround is coming for this team and now they have a goalie that will bring a fresh perspective to their game.

Forwards	Cap	Defense	Cap	Goalies	Cap
Claude Giroux	8.275	Andrew MacDonald	5.000	Brian Elliott	2.750
Jakub Voracek	8.250	Shayne Gostisbehere	4.500	Michal Neuvirth	2.500
Valtteri Filppula	5.000	Radko Gudas	3.350
Sean Couturier	4.450	Ivan Provorov	0.894
Wayne Simmonds	3.975	Brandon Manning	0.975
Matt Read	3.625	Travis Sanheim	0.863
Dale Weise	2.350	TJ Brennan	0.625
Michael Raffl	2.350
Jordan Weal	1.750
Mike Vecchione	0.900
Travis Konecny	0.894
Phil Varone	0.650
Colin McDonald	0.633

The Flyers have nearly $9.4 million in cap space left to use and they still have an open spot on this projected roster, which could be kept for Patrick, who should get to sign here in the next couple of weeks.  Flyers management has done a pretty good job assembling a mix of veterans and young players and they have kept the cap number to a reasonable level.  This seems to be a growing trend in the NHL.

I like how this team is shaping up, even after the trade that saw Brayden Schenn sent to St. Louis to open up some more cap space and a roster spot for their up and coming youth.  If Elliott can get his game together early in the 2018 season, the Flyers should make a good run towards the playoffs, even if they don't quite make it.  They are still in a very tough division and they may have to exercise just a little bit more patience in the coming season, before they have the experience to compete with Pittsburgh and Washington on a full-time basis.

Rangers Win Shattenkirk Sweeps

The best unrestricted free agent defenseman, according to the hockey pool rankings, was snapped up by the New York Rangers on Saturday, as they signed Kevin Shattenkirk to a new 4-year deal, worth a grand total of $26.6 million.  There were some reports out there that Shattenkirk left a lot of money on the table from other teams and their offers, but it was his biggest desire to play on Broadway and now he has got his wish.

Last season between the Blues and the Capitals, the 28-year old scored 13 goals and 56 points in 80 games, finishing 4th among all defenders in scoring, 79th overall.  He brings a good portion of offense to a blueline that is fairly reliable already, especially with Brady Skjei emerging as a solid scoring talent as well.

Also on Saturday, the Rangers were able to add a new back-up goalie, giving Ondrej Pavelec a shot behind Henrik Lundqvist.  Pavelec signed a 1-year deal after he had a bit of a rough year in the Jets organization.

Forwards	Cap	Defense	Cap	Goalies	Cap
Rick Nash	7.800	Kevin Shattenkirk	6.650	Henrik Lundqvist	8.500
Chris Kreider	4.625	Marc Staal	5.700	Ondrej Pavelec	1.300
Mats Zuccarello	4.500	Ryan McDonagh	4.700
J.T. Miller	2.750	Brendan Smith	4.350
Michael Grabner	1.600	Kevin Klein	2.000
Kevin Hayes	1.300	Nick Holden	1.650
Jimmy Vesey	0.925	Brady Skjei	0.925
Pavel Buchnevich	0.925	Anthony DeAngelo	0.863
Adam Tambellini	0.803
Cristoval Nieves	0.755
Gabriel Fontaine	0.737
Matt Puempel	0.725

It's still strange to me to see the Rangers in pretty good shape, when it comes to the salary cap and their remaining space.  Their current 22-man projected roster, plus their buyouts, are only coming in at $66.7 million, leaving over $8 million left to play with.  It will go downhill in a hurry though, as they still have plenty of work left to do this off-season, trying to re-sign both Mika Zibanejad and Jesper Fast.

The addition of Shattenkirk isn't quite enough to convince me that the Rangers are going to be a great team next season.  Rick Nash still needs to play as well as his salary suggests that he should be playing, while the rest of their forward depth still lacks that consistent bite.  Already, the are a much different looking team after dealing away Derek Stepan, but unless Jimmy Vesey is going to pick up the slack in his sophomore season, I am not believing in the Rangers today.

Jets Add Mason and Kulikov

The Winnipeg Jets took home the top prize in Saturday's free agent frenzy, the top hockey pool point-getter among all unrestricted free agents, goalie Steve Mason.  Mason signed a 2-year, $8.2 million deal early on Saturday after what was believed to be some good meetings with the Jets during the talking period, where teams could sell the team, but not necessarily negotiate terms.

The 29-year old keeper had an up-and-down year with the Philadelphia Flyers in 2017, posting 26 wins and 59 points in 58 appearances for the club, which was good enough for 18th among all goalies in the league.

The Jets also added defenseman Dmitry Kulikov, who didn't finish among the top defenders last season, as injuries forced him to miss nearly half the season in Buffalo last year.  The 26-year old defender had the remainder of his last deal bought out and the Jets signed him to a new 3-year, $13 million deal, getting him to join an already potent blueline.

Forwards	Cap	Defense	Cap	Goalies	Cap
Mark Scheifele	6.125	Dustin Byfuglien	7.600	Steve Mason	4.100
Blake Wheeler	5.600	Toby Enstrom	5.750	Michael Hutchinson	1.150
Bryan Little	4.700	Tyler Myers	5.500
Mathieu Perreault	4.125	Dmitry Kulikov	4.333
Shawn Matthias	2.125	Jacob Trouba	3.000
Adam Lowry	1.125	Ben Chiarot	1.400
Patrik Laine	0.925	Joshua Morrissey	0.863
Joel Armia	0.925	Julian Melchiori	0.625
Kyle Connor	0.925
Jack Roslovic	0.925
Nikolaj Ehlers	0.894
Marko Dano	0.850
Nic Petan	0.758

The Jets didn't go too crazy with their spending and they already are shaping up their team fairly well.  The current projected 23-man roster is coming in at $65.8 million against the cap, leaving them around $9.2 million left to spend, if they so choose.  The Jets still have Connor Hellebuyck, Andrew Copp and Brandon Tanev left to sign out of restricted free agency, which shouldn't be too much trouble and those are three that could jump into the projected lineup, once signed too.

The additions of Mason and Kulikov definitely bring some new life to this roster.  A bonafide starting goalie is a step up from pitting two young goalies against each other in a roster spot battle, while more offense from the blueline is almost a scary thought for Winnipeg, which already boasts a pretty powerful blueline before now.  These are two really good signings for this team and it could be what they need to make that move into the playoffs in the Central

Bernier Heads to Denver

The Colorado Avalanche lost Calvin Pickard to the Vegas Golden Knights at the expansion draft, so they were definitely in need of a new goalie and they have themselves a back-up, possible new starter in Jonathan Bernier. Bernier signed a 1-year deal, reportedly worth $2.75 million and he should battle for the number one job with Semyon Varlamov.

The 28-year old looked very good in Anaheim in the 2017 season, winning 21 games and collecting 46 points, but he wasn't going to be the number one with John Gibson there.

With Varlamov's well-documented injury problems, Bernier is going to a situation where his number could get called at any time and he could certainly push for that top spot on the depth chart.  I think there is some value to him in Colorado, now if the Avalanche can put a team in front, then he'll be good for some real points.

Early Fringe Signings (Jul 1)

After already posting a fringe signings post on Friday afternoon, the Florida Panthers made signing in the evening, inking soon-to-be restricted free agent Alex Petrovic to a 1-year deal, worth $1.85 million.

The 25-year old is known more for his physical presence in the Panthers' lineup, but he did post 1 goal and 14 points as well, ranking him 129th among all defensemen.

Florida has got themselves a good mix of youth and veterans on their blueline, heading into the 2018 season, which does raise an eyebrow, when it comes to putting together their projections for the year.  I don't think Petrovic is really hockey pool material, unless the PIM pool is coming back for another season.

The Toronto Maple Leafs got ahead of the game on Saturday morning, re-signing goaltenders Curtis McElhinney and Garret Sparks to new 2-year deals, just ahead of the free agency window opening.

McElhinney is the true fringe player of the two, finishing 54th among all goalies in pool points, finishing with 8 wins and 18 points in 21 appearances for Toronto, playing behind Frederik Andersen all season.  The 34-year old veteran will carry a cap hit of $850,000 per season and could still give Toronto a steady start, every once and a while.